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    • Who is Miller Moss? What you need to know about USC football’s new quarterback
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    Who is Miller Moss? What you need to know about USC football’s new quarterback

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    Life after Caleb Williams begins for USC football.

    When the Trojans take the field for the first time during the 2024 college football season, the Lincoln Riley-coached team will be led onto the field by a familiar name to USC fans: someone who has been waiting his turn to be the next great USC QB in Miller Moss.

    REQUIRED READING: College football power rankings: Georgia and Ohio State lead the odds

    Moss was a member of the 2021 recruiting class and attempted just 59 passes while serving as a backup to Williams, the future No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft. However, Moss showed his potential during the 2023 DIRECTV Holiday Bowl at Petco Park in San Diego on Dec. 27, 2023.

    Moss, making his first career start at the collegiate level, threw for 372 passing yards and set a Holiday Bowl, USC Bowl and Pac-12 Bowl game record with six touchdown passes. The six TD passes were also the most thrown by a Trojan quarterback making his first career start.

    Moss now gets a chance to become a regular starter and make his second career start in a key Week 1 game for the Trojans against No. 12 LSU at 7:30 p.m. ET on Sunday from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

    Here’s everything you need to know about Moss, including his decision to stay at USC, his recruitment, stats and more:

    Watch LSU vs USC on Fubo (Free Trial)

    Why did Miller Moss stay at USC?

    After enrolling early, Moss attempted just 13 passes as a true freshman in games against Washington State and California during the COVID-shortened 2021 season. Clay Helton, the coach who recruited Moss to USC, was fired on Sept. 13, just two games into the season. When starter Kedon Slovis was injured, another true freshman from the same recruiting class earned the snaps over Moss as the starter.

    Riley was announced as the Trojans’ coach on November 28, 2001. Riley immediately brought in freshman quarterback Caleb Williams, who was quickly named the starter.

    As a sophomore, Moss attempted 14 passes during the 2022 season. In his first two seasons, Moss played in just seven games and attempted 27 passes, all of which came on garbage time. As a redshirt freshman, he played against Rice, Fresno State, Arizona State, Colorado and in the Pac-12 Championship against Utah. Despite Williams returning for his junior season, Moss stuck it out at USC as he entered his redshirt sophomore year.

    “I really have a lot of love for this university,” Moss said on Big Ten Media Day. “I have a lot of love for this staff, and obviously a lot of love for the players in the locker room, and I’m totally committed to them. I love this place, and I hope to have many more wins this year.”

    Moss appeared in four games during the regular season against San Jose State, Nevada, Stanford and Notre Dame. His most extensive action came against the Cardinal, completing 11 of his 15 passes for 112 yards. He had 134 yards and a touchdown against Nevada.

    After Williams declared for the 2024 NFL draft on signing day as the presumptive No. 1 pick in the draft, Riley told the media in attendance that the Trojans were looking to sign two quarterbacks through the transfer portal.

    Miller Moss Breaks Out in Holiday Bowl

    Moss was named the starter for the Trojans in the Dec. 27 Holiday Bowl against No. 15 Louisville. In his first career start, Moss made history with his performance, throwing for 372 yards and six touchdowns. The previous record was four touchdown passes, which Moss passed on a 12-yard lob to Ja’Kobi Lane in the third quarter to give the Trojans a 35-21 lead. Moss added his sixth touchdown with 10 minutes left on a perfectly thrown 44-yard strike to Duce Robinson.

    The next day, as Moss drove from San Diego to LA, he got a call from Riley.

    “He was like, ‘Hey, good job. I just want to let you know we’re not going to accept an older transfer,'” Moss told ESPN. “I think Lincoln really wanted to see me play and make a decision then, because I think he wanted to see if what happened in the game confirmed his evaluation of the practice.”

    After the USC spring game, Moss was named the favorite to take the starting role over UNLV transfer Jayden Maiava. Ultimately, Moss was named USC’s starter heading into the 2024 season on August 19, after three seasons as a reserve.

    Miller Moss High School

    Moss attended Bishop Alemany High in Mission Hills, California. During his senior season, he was named to the 2020 PrepStar Dream Team and first-team Southern California News Group Fab 15. As a junior, he completed 215-of-319 passes (67.4%) for 3,118 yards with 28 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He also rushed for 105 yards on 31 carries (8.8 average) and averaged 38.9 yards on 12 punts to earn Los Angeles Daily News Offensive Player of the Year honors.

    Miller Moss Recruitment

    As a recruit, Moss was the 76th overall recruit in the 2021 recruiting class, according to the 247 Sports Composite rankings. He was the 12th-ranked QB in a class that included Quinn Ewers, Caleb Williams, JJ McCarthy, Jalen Milroe and Drake Maye. Moss was the sixth-ranked player in California. LSU starter Garrett Nussmeier was the No. 14 QB in that class.

    Moss committed to USC on June 1, 2020, over Alabama, LSU and UCLA. According to his 247 Sports page, Moss had offers from 24 schools.ools. Jaxson Dart was also part of Helton’s two-QB class in 2021.

    Miller Moss Statistics

    Below are Moss’s stats from his three seasons at USC:

    • 2021: 8 of 13 passing, 74 yards, one touchdown, zero interceptions; three rushes for -14 yards in two games
    • 2022: 12 of 14 passing, 159 yards, one touchdown, zero interceptions; three rushes for 9 yards in five games
    • 2023: 46 of 65 passing, 681 yards, seven touchdowns, one interception; four rushes for 32 yards and two touchdowns in five games
    • Career: 66 of 92 passing, 914 yards, nine touchdowns, one interception; 10 rushes for 27 yards and two touchdowns in 12 games

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